After a wonderful week in Portgordon Scotland, I headed to Nerja Spain where I lived for roughly 5 years decades ago. When I lived there it was a fishing village of about 5-6000 people, with one public telephone and one traffic light. It’s grown to more than 22,000, more than a third of which are foreign expats, and during summer – high season – it’s full of vacationers.
I knew it wouldn’t be MY Nerja but I had to go back. If only to exorcise it from my nostalgia. I planned just 2 full days there with an evening and morning for arrival and departure. Why would I need more if I was only going to prove it wasn’t my town anymore?
But here’s the thing. I was determined to find old friends. When I lived there, while I was friendly with the expat community – all 12 of them- I became very close with the locals, the Nerjenos. And with exception of one expat friend – my friend Oliver, an American who’s who’s been living there since the 60s and is a wonderful sculptor and graphic artist (I have some of his works. If you’ve ever been in any of the places I’ve lived you’ve seen his work. ) – I needed to find my Nerjenos. But how?
I’ve said many times that social media has been the glue that keeps people in touch. I would have lost touch with so many friends had it not been for social media. As much as you’re determined to stay in touch, that usually lasted just until the next change of address. But for my Spanish friends, from Nerja, not even that. I searched online. But they were nowhere to be found.
My friend Carmen, whom I met all those years ago in Nerja and who still lives in Spain (and found me on social media years ago) but hasn’t been to Nerja in ages, met me in Malaga and we hopped on the bus to Nerja
I was floored by what I found there. How the town had grown! A house my friend Jane and I had rented the first year we were there was now a taxi stand, but the owners, Teresa and Jose , were the son and daughter in law of my old landlady. A building I lived in for a while,, was the only building of its height when i lived there and when I would drive home on my “moto” the last stretch was along a dirt road with nothing around – all of a sudden it was in the middle of town How Nerja had grown! How were we, Carmen and I, to find our Viejos amigos?
But we did it.
We did it by pure detective work. We asked locals (of a certain age) if they knew so and so and so and so. And once more we became part of the fabric of Nerja.
Not the outlying layer of tourists who come and soak up the sun. But OUR town. Our Nerja. And as much as it pains me to see so many foreigners who go only for the beaches, I smile at how this turismo has improved the economy to such an extent that my Viejos amigos are doing SO well.
This is a long way of saying that friends (and I don’t exclude family here ) are really the only thing that’s truly important in our lives. The friendships we make last a lifetime, and even more.
The week I spent in Portgordon with Philip was one of the best weeks ever because Philip is a friend like very few. And finding my old friends in Nerja gave me back my Pueblo. No importa how many foreigners arrive fir vacation. My Nerja is still there . My people are still there. And I’m blessed by the friendships that have defined my life, from the US to Portgordon to Mexico, to Espana to everywhere in between. And I love you all
And I hate typing on my phone so if there are typos, too bad.
Typed as a Facebook post on my phone
melissa eXelberth
american female voice over talent
July 28, 2017